


Selah

by melodramatic



Category: Twenty One Pilots
Genre: Accidental overdose, Chronic Migraines, Emergency room, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, M/M, tons of fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-07
Updated: 2017-04-07
Packaged: 2018-10-15 23:29:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,159
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10559518
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/melodramatic/pseuds/melodramatic
Summary: Tyler had Josh to thank for his life.





	

It was a Thursday night. 

Thursday?

Maybe Friday.

Tyler didn't know, and he was in far too much pain to care. He was laying down in his bed, a thick blanket pulled all the way over his head as tears silently fell down his cheeks. 

His head was burning and pulsating at the same time, and a sharp pain jabbed at the base of his skull, bringing an unbearable amount of pain at every slight movement. 

When his phone chimed next to him, he cringed, the simple sound like knives in his brain.

_(10:05) Josh: How's your head?_

Tyler couldn't help but crack a smile somewhere deep inside his soul. He had told Josh earlier that day the pain that his head was in, and of course Josh was always concerned. He really should've been asleep considering he had work early in the morning tomorrow, but Tyler was just a tiny bit too selfish to let Josh go to sleep before he did.

_(10:08) Tyler: Still killing me._

_(10:08) Josh: I'm sorry :( have you taken any medicine?_

_(10:10) Tyler: Not yet. Hurts to move_

_(10:11) Josh: Do you need me to come over?_

Tyler thought for a moment. He really did need Josh to come over, but he didn't want to inconvenience the other boy. 

_(10:12) Tyler: I think I'm fine for now. I'll take some medicine and let you know_

_(10:12) Josh: Okay, please do. Don't take too much <3_

And then Tyler sighed. Of course, Josh was always a bit rightly concerned when Tyler really needed the medicine he was prescribed, due to a hopeless and desperate night almost a year ago.

He was better now - really, he was. But that didn't stop Josh from needing an extra bit of validation that Tyler was okay, and that he took just the right dose of his medication.

Tyler slowly removed the covers from over himself, and got up out of bed. Thankfully, the blinds were shut and the sky was pitch black, so there was hardly any light that stung the space behind his eyes. 

He walked over to his medicine cabinet and grabbed the bottle that contained the strongest pills. He read the label: TAKE 1 TABLET BY MOUTH EVERY 8 HOURS AS NEEDED.

So he took two, just to be safe.

He laid back down on his bed and waited about five minutes before getting up and going right back to his medicine cabinet. He took two more. And then one more. But that was okay, because it was only five pills, and what could five pills do?

His phone chimed, his brain jabbed him, and he took two more.

_(10:20) Josh: You still there?_

_(10:23) Tyler: Still here._

_(10:23) Josh: How much medicine did you take?_

Tyler took a deep breath and looked down into the pill bottle. He had taken seven, but it only felt like two, as the pain in his head just got worse and worse. Somewhere deep in his brain, he knew he should sit down and actually wait for the effects of the medicine to kick in, but somewhere deeper in his brain, something told him to keep going.

_(10:30) Tyler: Just a few._

_(10:30) Josh: How many is a few?_

Tyler put the medicine bottle back into his cabinet and took down the one right next to it, opening the cap and not even bothering to pour any in his hand as he tipped the bottle to his lips and swallowed what felt like three or four. He put the bottle back in the cabinet and went to go lay down on his bed.

_(10:42) Josh: Ty?_

_(10:45) Tyler: Here._

_(10:46) Josh: How are you feeling?_

Tyler's eyes fluttered shut for a second, but he quickly opened them back up. He always felt bad when he fell asleep in the middle of a conversation, especially when it was with his best friend. 

He took a deep breath, willing himself to stay awake. His head still pulsed and he thought of taking more medication.

He was in the middle of typing out a response to Josh when suddenly his vision went purple and yellow for a second, and he tried to readjust his eyes. He blinked hard a few times and took the blanket from over him, standing up from his bed only to immediately fall backwards. 

His entire body was shaking. 

His head didn't hurt as bad - the pain was almost nonexistent at this point, but his entire body shook violently as his brain became increasingly fuzzy.

He slowly reached for his phone.

_(10:55) Tyler: Josh_

_(10:55) Josh: Yeah?_

_(11:00) Josh: Tyler?_

_(11:03) Josh: Tyler, please answer me._

_(11:07) Josh: How much medicine did you take?_

Tyler layed in his bed, staring up at the ceiling. He felt his phone constantly buzzing beside him but he had hardly enough energy to pick it up.

Mustering whatever last bit of lucid thought he had, Tyler typed out a response.

_(11:10) Tyler: No good._

_1 Missed Call From Josh._

_2 Missed Calls From Josh._

_3 Missed Calls From Josh._

_(11:22) Josh: I'm on my way to check up on you_

Tyler tried to read the message, but his vision was blurred and unfocused, making the letters jump around on the screen. He curled himself into a ball as his head was weighed down with a dull ache of exhaustion, yet blood was pumping through his veins at an incredibly fast pace. He thought he felt one of his feet go numb, but he couldn't have known for sure. 

He vaguely heard his front door open and close.

"Tyler?" A familiar voice called out. 

"Tyler, where are you?" 

Footsteps wandered around the living room, the kitchen, then both of the bathrooms before his bedroom door swung open.

"Oh - Tyler, are you okay?" Josh asked, kneeling down to be eye-to-eye with the boy who was still curled in on himself.

Tyler's stomach churned as he shook his head. 

Josh ran a hand through Tyler's hair, pushing fringe from his face where it began to stick as the boy broke out into a cold sweat. 

"How much medicine did you take?" He asked.

Tyler shrugged.

"Did you take too much?"

Tyler nodded.

"Can you stand up for me? Please?"

Tyler took a short breath, as he very slowly swung his legs off of the edge of the bed. He stood up, immediately feeling the nausea take over the pit of his stomach, and his entire body began to shake again. He fell forwards, but Josh caught him.

"Good Lord, Tyler. C'mon, we have to get you to a hospital," Josh said, picking Tyler up bridal-style and carrying him quickly to the car. 

Josh sat him down in the passenger seat and strapped him in, then he quickly got into driver's seat, flooring the gas pedal.

Tyler bit his lip from where he sat, his bones heavier than lead.

He moved his head so that he was facing Josh. A tear fell from his cheek.

Josh looked over at him and wiped the tear, "Hey, hey, don't worry. It's gonna be alright, okay? You'll be fine - you are fine."

Tyler's mouth was dry as he opened it, "I'm sorry. I," He paused, his mind going blank for a second, "It was an accident."

"I know, Ty. I know," Josh responded. He took Tyler's hand in his, and kissed it, stroking his thumb back and forth on the back of the other boy's hand.

Tyler's heart skipped a beat and he vaguely decided that he liked it when Josh held his hand. They made it to the hospital in record time, and Josh rushed Tyler in quickly to tell the receptionist why they needed to be seen immediately. 

She had Josh fill out some paperwork, and he sat Tyler down in a wheelchair right beside him.

Tyler's eyes began to flutter close, and his head tilted backwards.

Josh shook his arm, "Tyler, you need to stay awake."

His eyes didn't open.

"Tyler. Tyler, please-" His voice broke for a second, "Please, I need you to stay with me, okay?"

He opened his eyes to slits, and upon seeing the worry and concern written all across Josh's expression, he opened his eyes fully and tried to distract himself by reading the different posters around the waiting room. His vision was too unfocused to actually read whole sentences, but it at least gave his brain something to do. 

Josh returned the paperwork back to the receptionist, the handwriting hardly legible from going so fast. Josh sat back down next to Tyler, his leg bobbing up and down as he anxiously waited to hear a nurse call Tyler's name.

There were other people that were going to be seen before them, but Tyler's condition was serious enough that they only waited for about five minutes. 

"Tyler Joseph?" A nurse called.

"Yes! We're coming!" Josh jumped up from his chair, pushing Tyler's wheelchair through the hallway doors.

Tyler's eyes began to flutter shut again, and Josh shook his shoulder.

"C'mon, Ty. Stay awake."

He opened his eyes, as his best friend requested. He was too gone from reality to really understand what was going on, but his heart felt a bit full when his mind began to wrap around everything Josh was doing and has done for him. 

Tyler took a deep breath and kept his eyes wide open.

They entered the room that the nurse directed them to, and Josh picked Tyler up, placing him in the hospital bed. 

Tyler's body still shook, and jaw began to tighten. He was freezing cold, and he was burning up. There was no pain to be felt anywhere on his body, but his insides felt cold, as if they had frozen underneath his skin. 

"A doctor will be with you shortly," The nurse said, hurrying right back out of the room.

Josh nodded silently, his attention still completely focused on Tyler. He placed his arm on the shaking boy's forearm, rubbing up and down gently. 

"How do you feel?" Josh asked.

Tyler shook his head, "Nauseous." A shiver went down his entire body.

"Are you cold?" He asked.

Tyler wasn't really sure weather of not he was, but he nodded nonetheless. Josh got up from his chair and flagged down a nurse, asking for a blanket. They gave him a cheap, sorry excuse for a blanket, but it was something.

Tyler still laid in a fetal position, so the blanket fit nicely over him.

"Thank you," He mumbled out. 

"You're welcome."

Josh pushed more fringe out of the boy's face - he still shook harshly, and Josh wondered if he should ask for another blanket, but he also wondered if that would even calm the shaking.

Josh sat back and sighed. The scene before him broke his heart. If he could take away everything Tyler was feeling at the moment, he'd have done it in a heartbeat. He loved his best friend dearly (in more ways than he would admit to Tyler), and he leaned forward again, stroking his arm soothingly against Tyler's arm, as he usually would do when Tyler wasn't feeling well. 

His heart was full and his heart was broken.

Despite the countless C.A.T. scans and blood work that had been done on Tyler, there was no doctor that had ever given the boy a sure answer as to why he was cursed with horrible headaches and stabbing migraines almost everyday of his life. Tyler had learned to work through them at this point, and no one would ever even tell he was in pain unless he said it aloud, which he rarely ever did.

But then there were times like these, when the pain in his head would become so great that he would do anything to get rid of it. 

Josh bit his lip as tears stung his eyes. The shaking, blurry-eyed, medical mystery in front of him squinted his eyes at Josh.

"Are you crying?" He asked, his voice hoarse.

Josh let out a tortured chuckle, "A little bit."

"Why?"

He sighed, "I just... I hate seeing you like this. In so much pain. I wish there was something I could do."

Tyler furrowed his eyebrows and tried to sit up, but his elbows gave way beneath him and he collapsed back onto the bed, smacking his head against the edge of the bed. 

Josh sucked in a deep breath as Tyler groaned in pain, and he reached forward to help get Tyler repositioned.

"Careful, love. You're not feeling well, just stay still," He said, caressing his hand down the side of Tyler's cheek.

Another tear fell down Tyler's cheek and Josh wiped it away.

"Josh," Tyler breathed, his body slumped against the bed.

"Yeah?"

"I'm sorry you had to take me here. I'm sorry I did this."

A lump formed in Josh's throat and he swallowed thickly, "It's not your fault, Tyler. You were just trying to get your migraine to go away. It's okay."

"But-" More tears began to fall from Tyler's tired eyes, "You also took me last time. I feel bad that you're always the one that helps me."

Josh shook his head, "Last time was a completely different scenario. You can't compare it to this time. You're a lot better now."

Tyler sniffled as Josh reached for a paper towel on the other side of the small room and began to wipe at Tyler's cheeks, "And I like helping you Tyler. You're my best friend. I love helping you. Plus you help me, too." He swiped the napkin under Tyler's nose, and then threw it into the trash.

"How do... How do I help you?" He asked.

Josh thought carefully for a second, but didn't get a chance to respond before a doctor pulled the curtain aside, and entered the room with a clipboard.

"Tyler Joseph?" He asked.

"Me," Tyler responded, his voice quiet. 

The doctor asked him a few questions about his medicaion, how much he think he took, what he had eaten that day, and several similar questions. Josh sat back down on the uncomfortable plastic chair, his leg bobbing up and down from where his anxiety made itself manifest. He silently asked for the doctor to be hurry up: he just wanted them to fix his broken friend.

It wasn't much longer before Josh was being asked to step out of the room while a doctor pumped Tyler's stomach. 

Josh looked at Tyler who was beginning to tear up again. 

"N-no, please," Tyler pleaded with the doctor, "I need him. I need him."

Josh couldn't help the little jump in his heart and smile in his chest.

The doctor looked between the two of them for a second, and then shrugged.

"Okay, that's fine. As long as you're not sensitive to blood or bodily fluids," He warned. 

"I'll be fine," Josh responded, even though he wasn't sure if he would be. 

The man got the equiptment ready - checking monitors, powering up machines, and cleaning out certain utensils. 

When Josh looked down at Tyler, he could see an intense fear in his eyes. He no longer looked tired. His body was still shaking, and his eyes shuttered every few seconds, but he was fully aware of everything.

Josh sat down and took his hand tightly, "Listen, Ty. You're gonna be okay, alright? Just like it helped you last time. It's gonna help you this time."

Tyler nodded, and yet another few tears fell from his eyes. Josh wiped them with his thumb, and then leaned forward to kiss him on the forehead.

"I'll be right here the entire time. I promise."

Tyler bit his lip and nodded, and noted how soft Josh's lips felt.

The doctor was standing patiently on the other side of the bed, waiting for the two of them to finish.

Both Tyler and Josh looked towards him.

"Are you ready, Mr. Joseph?" He asked. 

He looked back at Josh, who nodded at him, and in return, he nodded at the doctor. 

He briefly recapped the way Gastric Suctioning worked, and Tyler nodded along. When he was done, he asked Tyler to lay all the way back on the hospital bed, and relax. He told him to keep his mouth open as he reached in and inserted a small plastic tube to keep him from vomiting. 

He reached for another few tools on a plastic tray beside him, and pulled away a long, thin plastic tube and slowly slid it down Tyler's throat. When it reached the bottom of the Tyler's stomach, his throat bobbed as the doctor pumped a small bit of air into the tube. 

The doctor secured the tube in his mouth, and then picked up a large syringe. 

"I'm going to need you to lay on your side, please. You can face your boyfriend if you'd like," He said.

Josh chuckled and even Tyler cracked a smile as the both of them turned slightly red, but neither of them bothered to correct the man.

The doctor began to pump water into Tyler stomach, and his face contorted.

Josh stroked his thumb across Tyler's hand, "You're doing good, alright?"

Tyler didn't nod, because he didn't want to accidentally mess anything up, but he squeezed Josh's hand lightly, silently responding. The doctor continued to pump water into his stomach for a few minutes before he spoke up again.

"Okay, so now I'm going to pump fluid from your stomach, Mr. Joseph. It may hurt, just depending on your pain tolerance, but I am going to tell you right now that it is very uncomfortable," He said, making a few adjustments to his tools. 

Tyler hummed in recognition, and once again, he looked at Josh with fear in his eyes.

Josh kissed his hand again, "I'm right here. You can squeeze my hand as hard as you want."

Tyler blinked at him and squeezed his hand softly in response. The doctor began to pump the syringe so that fluid was being extracted from Tyler stomach. He flinched and his face immediately contorted, as he squeezed Josh's hand hard. 

All Josh could do was push some hair out of the boy's face, and let his heart fall apart as Tyler squeezed his eyes shut, silent tears beginning to stream down his face. 

"He's done this before, right?" The doctor asked Josh. Tyler was too focused on not throwing up to listen to the conversation.

Josh tore his eyes from Tyler's pained expression to look at the doctor who was just about as calm as one could be. 

"Yeah. About a year ago."

The doctor nodded, "We have his records in the file. It said that the first time was from an attempted suicide?"

Josh felt a wave of nausea run through his body, and his tone got cold as he looked back down at Tyler.

"Yeah."

The boy still had his eyes squeezed shut, but his tears were less frequent now. 

He looked back up at the doctor, "This time was an accident, though. He deals with chronic headaches constantly. He was just trying to get rid of the pain."

The doctor said nothing for a second, before he lowered his tone, "Are you sure?"

Josh's eyebrows furrowed, "Yes, I'm sure."

Silence.

"I know my best friend. We got him help right after he got out of the hospital, and he's been doing very well ever since," Josh paused for a second, and looked back down at Tyler, clasping his other hand on top of Tyler's, so that both of his larger hands were covering Tyler's smaller one.

"He still has his bad days," Josh continued, "But today wasn't one of them."

"Does he live alone?" The doctor asked.

Josh nodded.

"I would definitely recommend getting him a roommate, then. Maybe you should move in with him, so someone who knows him as well as you do can keep an eye on him. Just in case."

Josh looked back down at Tyler whose eyes were back open, and staring at Josh.

Josh gave a light squeeze to his hand, "Yeah. We can discuss that later."

The doctor began telling Josh more about the procedural aftercare that they'd have to do at home, but Josh was hardly paying attention. His gaze was stuck on the beautifully disastrous man in front of him. His body shook, his leg twitched, and there was sweat that matted his hair to his forehead, but he was still so undeniably gorgeous. 

And Josh was not nearly as jealous as he was enchanted.

Finally, after Josh watched Tyler suffer for way too long, the doctor finally declared that the procedure was complete. The doctor carefully removed the tube from Tyler's stomach, and the boy gagged when he removed the gaurd from his throat. 

"You can sit back up if you'd like," The doctor claimed. 

Josh helped Tyler sit himself upright, and they both took a deep breath. 

The doctor continued talking about aftercare, recovery time, and the dangers of taking too many pills at once. Tyler stared blankly up at the ceiling, his eyes blinking lazily. 

"I'm going to go process your report, and I'll be right back," The doctor said, placing dirty utensils in a specific drawer before heading out of the room. 

Tyler didn't say anything, but he was still tightly holding on to Josh's hand.

"Hey," Josh said softly to catch Tyler's attention.

He slowly turned his head.

"How do you feel?" He asked, as he always did.

Tyler shrugged, "Really sick. But kinda better." 

He wasn't shaking hardly as much anymore, and he seemed less on edge which was good.

"Is your headache back?" Josh asked.

Tyler nodded, "It's only a small headache, though."

Well, at least that was better than the migraine he had been dealing with before. 

"Josh?" Tyler asked after a beat of silence.

"Yeah?"

Tyler looked at Josh intently, and brought his hand up, holding it against his heart.

"I love you."

"I love you too, Tyler."

Tyler licked his lips, "But, like. As more than a friend. I really, really love you. A lot."

Josh's eyes widened at the sudden confession, "Really?"

The boy nodded, "Yeah, really." He looked at where their hands were still attached, "And I like it when you kiss me."

Josh chuckled, detaching their hands so that he could rest his hand on the side of Tyler's cheek. He brought him close, and their lips met. It was soft, and tasted like medicine.

"You taste like medicine," Josh observed, and Tyler chuckled, and then contorted his face due to the pain that still sat in his chest.

"Sorry," Tyler said.

Josh kissed him again softly, a smile on both of their lips, "It's okay."

The doctor came back and handed them two pages worth of information on everything they had talked about since they had been at the hospital.

Tyler insisted he could walk back to the car, but Josh still insisted on pushing him in the wheelchair, and carrying him bridal-style into his house. 

He helped Tyler change into his pajamas and get ready for bed. He laid Tyler into his bed, and boy sighed comfortably. 

"Feels nice to be back in my own bed," Tyler said, already half-asleep. 

"Yeah?" Josh asked, tucking him in.

Tyler nodded, a small smile on his face.

Josh leaned down and kissed him on the forehead, but before he could get too far, Tyler reached up and grabbed the back of his neck, bringing him down and kissing him tenderly on the lips.

"Thank you, again. For everything," Tyler whispered.

Josh sighed contentedly, "Of course. You know I'd do anything for you."

Tyler brought him down and kissed him again.

"Can you stay with me, please?" He asked, breaking apart only an inch or two.

Josh nodded, "Of course." 

He borrowed some of Tyler's pajamas and crawled into bed right beside him, and Tyler immediately turned in the bed so that he was buried in the crook of the other boy's neck. Josh had his hand on the small of Tyler's back, keeping him close and warm.

Tyler looked up at him, "Josh?"

"Hm?"

"You don't think I did it on purpose this time, do you?" He asked, his tone soft, but bothered.

Josh looked down at him, "Of course not. I know you were just trying to treat your headache. Don't let what that doctor said bother you. He doesn't know you like I do."

Tyler smiled and hummed happily, bringing himself closer to Josh. He planted a small kiss on his Adam's Apple.

"I love you, Josh."

"I love you too, Tyler."

And in that moment, Tyler was just so blissfully happy, he couldn't remember why he had ever been dissatisfied with his life in the first place.

**Author's Note:**

> Based off of a real experience.
> 
> Thank you all for reading. Questions, comments and concerns are always appreciated. 
> 
> Stay alive, friends
> 
> (Tumblr: ClinicallyForgotten)


End file.
